Box-staying machine



-(No Mod'el.) H. 80H. A. INMAN.

BOX STAYING MACHINE.

Patented Mar. 3-,J1896.

HORACE INMAN AND HARRY A. INMAN, OF AMSTERDAM, NEIV YORK.

BOX-STAYING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 555,812, dated March 3, 1896. Application filed January 13, 1896. Serial No. 575,254. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, HORACE INMAN and HARRY A. INMAN, citizens of the United States, residing in Amsterdam, county of Montgomery, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in BoxStaying Machines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

In another application for Letters Patent of the United States filed concurrently herewith, Serial No. 57 5,253, we have shown and described a novelmachine for applying adhesive strips to boxes and other articles, which comprises as important features a support for the article to which the adhesive strip is to be applied, a head which reciprocates in a direction substantially parallel with the surface of the article as it is supported in the machine, and a roller carriedby said head and adapted to roll to and fro over the previouslymoistened adhesive strip and thereby cause it to adhere firmly to the box or other article.

The machine referred to is capable of avariety of uses, the single roller which is therein employed having its working face conformed to the surface of the article to which the adhesive strip is to be applied. In the present machine we also employ a support for the article and a reciprocating head, and we likewise effect the adhesion of the strip to the article by a rolling action, but the machine of this application differs from the machine of the above-mentioned application in the particulars hereinafter pointed out and is particularly designed for the application of staystrips to the corners of rectangular or other polygonal boxes and embodies two independent rollers, one for each face of the box adjacent to the angle formed by the abut-ting sides of the box. These rollers act inclependently of each other, and each acts upon the strip in a direction more nearly at right angles to the surface than would be possible if a single-grooved roller were employed, and there is less liability to break or distort the adhesive strip, which, if it be of paper, is very tender on account of its saturated condition. In some respects the construction of this machine is substantially the same as the construction of the machine shown in the other application referred to, and the description herein of such common parts will be made as brief as possible. It will be understood, moreover, that so far as such common parts are concerned we do not intend to limit our invention by anything that is herein shown and described.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a plan view of a box-staying machine to which our present improvements are applied. Fig. 2 is a front end elevation of the same with the supporting-standard removed. Fig. 3 is a detail view, partly in side elevation and partly broken out, showing the support for the box, a portion of the reciprocating head, and the vertically-adjustable head with one of the main rollers and the pilot-roll. Fig. l is an end View showing also the support for the box, the vertically-adjustable head, and the rollers carried thereby.

The working parts of the machine are supported by a suitable standard A, and to the faceplate A on its upper portion is secured a verticallyadjustable bracket B, which carries the supporting-arm B for the box, the two upper faces of the arm being so arranged relatively to each other as to support the two sides of the box firmly during the operation of securin g the stay-strip thereto. The bracket B is secured ad justably to the face-plate A by bolts 1), which pass through the verticallyelongated slots 1) in the bracket B, and said bracket is adjusted vertically by a screw a, which is threaded in a bracket a of the face plate A and is provided with a lock-nut a A horizontal bed-plate C, which is secured to the standard A, is provided with ways a c for the reception and guidance of a reciprocating head D, which moves in a direction. parallel with the corner of the box to be operated upon. A vertically-adjustable head F is secured to a yoke F, which is mounted to slide vertically, to a limited extent, in suitable ways formed in the head D. A screw-threaded stud D is fixed to the head D and passes through an aperture in the yoke F to receive above the yoke a compressionspring d and adjusting and lock nuts d, by which means the downward pressure of the head F may be regulated as desired.

As a convenient means of effecting the desired reciprocations of the head D we have represented a shaft G, with its driving-pulley G mounted in a suitable bearing 0 on the bed-plate C and provided with a crankdisk G and crank-pin G which is connected to the head D by a link G The head F is provided with suitable bearings for two wheels or rollers which, in order to avoid confusion, we have herein designated by the reference characters E and E, respectively, and a pilot-wheel Elwhich is shown in Fig. 2 as having a flat working face, while in Fig. 4 it is shown as grooved to fit upon the angle of the supporting-arm 13. The wheel or roller E is preferably disposed in a plane at right angles to the corresponding face of the support B while the wheel or roller E, which preferably has a beveled face, as represented in Figs. 2 and 4:, .is so disposed as to give its face a full bearing upon the support B or upon the side of the box and the adhesive strip which are interposed. The pilotroll E is mounted slightly in advance of the rolls and E and is adapted to bear upon the corner of the support B so that it may hold the adhesive strip in position for the action thereon of the independent rollers or wheels and E. Preferably the three rollers are so proportioned and arranged, as represented in Fig. 4, as to cover the entire stay-strip from the outer edge of the wheel or roller t0 the outer edge of the wheel or roller E. The wheel or roller 1 is preferably arranged to sever the adhesive strip which is laid in po sition before it, and for this reason it has a cutting-edge e which cooperates with the ct ge of the plate over which the strip moves.

The strip of paper, cloth, or other material with which the corner of the box is to be stayed is preferably coated with dry adhesive and supplied from a reel or spool II, which is mounted to revolve freely upon a spindle it, carried by an arm or bracket I. The latter supports the strip-moistening devices represented at J, and the strip-feedin g devices represented at K, the latter being operated through suitable intermediate devices by the reciprocation of the head D. As previously stated, the portion of the strip which has been projected over the box on the support B is cut off by the cutting-edge e of the wheel E in eo-operation with the edge 71 of the bracket I or of a plate carried thereby, and the strip is held during the cutting operation by a spring clamping-plate M, which is pressed down upon the delivery-plate N by a small roller carried by the stud of the roller E.

The feeding and pasting devices are substantially the same as in application, Serial No. 575,253, before referred to.

'When the machine has been in operation, the parts are brought to rest in the position represented in Fig. 1-that is to say, with the reciprocating head D in its rearward position by the action of a suitable starting and stopping device, which is represented at (l and is under the control of the operator. The box to be operated upon is then placed upon the support B and the machine is started. In its forward movement the reciprocating head I) first actuates the feeding devices to feed the strip forward until the requisite length thereof projects over the box on the support. In the continued movement of the head D the clamping-plate M is caused to clamp the strip and hold it firmly on the delivery-plate N and immediately the pilotroller E moves upon the strip and holds it in position while it is being severed by the edge of the wheel or roller E. If the pilot wheel or roller is grooved, as represented in Fig. at, it will bend down the two ends of the severed portion of the strip somewhat in advance of the rollers E and E. In any case the rollers E and E move upon and pass over the severed portion of the strip, laying it upon the box and acting upon it with a rolling action, and as they pass over the strip in the opposite direction on the return movement of the head D they effect the firm adhesion of the strip to the box without rcquiring the heavy pressure and the consequent great weight and strength of worhin g parts, which is necessary in machines intended to accomplish the same genera-l result by the action of two clamping-dies, one of which moves directly toward and from the other.

It will be readily understood that if the boxes to be operated upon are other than rectangular the wheels or rollers E and IE will be disposed accordingly, so that each roller shall act upon the corresponding side of the box substantially in the same manner as already described with reference to the arrangement shown for a rectangular box. It will be understood, therefore, that we do not intend to restrict our invention to the precise arrangement shown, and that with regard to the other parts of the machine other devices for effecting the reciprocation of the rollercarrying head and the moistening, feeding, and cutting of the adhesive strip may be substituted for those shown within the purview of our invention.

What we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a machine for applying staystrips to boxes, the combination of a support for the box, a head reciprocating in a direction substantially parallel with the corner of the box, and two independent rollers carried by said head and arranged to roll over and lay the stay-strip upon the box, each roller acting independently of the other upon the corresponding side of the box, substantially as shown and described.

2. In a machine for applying stay-strips to boxes, the combination of a support for the box, a head reciprocating in a direction sub stantially parallel with the corner of the box, and two independent rollers carried by said head and arranged to roll over and lay the stay-strip upon the box, each roller acting independently of the other upon the corresponding side of the box, and one of said rollers having a cutting edge to sever a portion of said strip, substantially as shown and described.

3. In a machine for applying stay-strips to boxes, the combination of a support for the box, a head reciprocating in a direction substantially parallel with the corner of the box, two independent rollers carried by said head and arranged to roll over and lay the staystrip upon the box, each roller acting independently of the other upon the corresponding side of the box, and a pilot-roller carried by said head in advance of the first-named rollers, substantially as shown and described.

4. In a machine for applying stay-strips to boxes, the combination of a support for the box, a head reciprocating in a direction substantially parallel with the corner of the box, two independent rollers carried by said head and arranged to roll over and lay the staystrip upon the box, each roller acting independently of the other upon the corresponding side of the box, and a pilot-roller carried by said head in advance of the first-na1ned rollers and grooved to conform to the corner of the box, substantially as shown and described.

5. In a machine for applying stay-strips to boxes, the combination of a support for the box, a head reciprocating in a direction substantially parallel with the corner of the box, two independent rollers carried by said head and arranged to roll over and lay the staystrip upon the box, each roller acting independontly of the other upon the corresponding side of the box, and strip-feeding devices to feed said strip forward in position to be applied to the box, substantially as shown and described.

6. In a machine for applying stay-strips to boxes, the combination of a support for the box, a head reciprocating in a direction substantially parallel with the corner of the box, two independent rollers carried by said head and arranged to roll over and lay the staystrip upon the box, each roller acting independently of the other upon the corresponding side of the box, and a cutting device carried by said reciprocating head to sever a portion of said strip, substantially as shown and described.

7. In a machine for applying stay-strips to boxes, the combination of a support for the box, a head reciprocating in a direction substantially parallel with the corner of the box, and two independent rollers carried by said head and disposed with relation to each other according to the shape of the box to be operated upon and arranged to roll over and lay the stay-strip upon the box, each roller acting independently of the other upon the correspondin g side of the box, substantially as shown and described.

This specification signed and witnessed this 8th day of January, A. D. 1890.

HORACE INMAN. HARRY A. INMAN.

In presence oi' RoBT. N. CLARK. II. B. WALnnoN. 

